Every now and then, we get to hear one song that has lyrics unacceptable to some group or some segment of the society. With half the world cribbing over not having enough freedom of expression, and the other half only being silent, musicians took to themselves to create songs with lyrics that could bring about change. Most of the times, the angst and the free flow of thoughts of the musicians ended up making controversial lyrics. Here are top 5 songs that really shook the world with their lyrics:

God Save The Queen

No, we are not talking of the British national anthem. Even though this song by The Sex Pistols shares its name with the anthem, it is nothing like the latter. It only talks about the Queen being fascist, and how the country doesn’t really have a future. Of course, it hurt the sentiments of a lot of people, considering how much they love their queen. Even though the BBC banned it, it did manage to become a Rock classic.

Money for Nothing

This song by the British band Dire Straits comes from their 1985 album called Brothers in Arms. Mark Knopfler and Sting share the songwriting credits. Even though Knopfler’s idea was to use as realistic lyrics as possible, some people took them to be sexist and homophobic, also a little racist. The lyrics actually originated in an appliance store where a worker was commenting on some music videos playing on the TV, and Knopfler decided to borrow a pen and paper, and started noting them down.

Suicide Solution

When Bon Scott, former AC/DC member passed away because of alcohol abuse, Ozzy Osbourne decided to write a song as a tribute to him, in which he referred to alcohol as ‘suicide solution’. Even though Ozzy is anyway famous for his strong lyrics, things got a little out of the hand with ‘Suicide Solution’, as a teenager shot himself dead while listening to the song. The court however, did not find Osbourne guilty when the parents charged him.

Used To Love Her

This song by Guns ‘n Roses wasn’t really taken well by feminist organizations around the world, because the lyrics clearly stated that a man used to love his wife once, but now he wanted to kill her. Even though the band members said that the song was written as a joke, and there were rumors that the ‘wife’ in the song actually referred to Axl’s dog, which had to be killed later and buried in the backyard, women around the world were pretty offended.

‘Kim’ by Eminem

This is again a song written for a wife, except that this time, it was actually meant for Eminem’s wife Kim, with really mean lyrics, stating how he murdered her, her husband and her stepson. During Eminem’s performance in Detroit, Kim saw the audience’s reaction and tried to commit suicide because of that. Later, she filed a case against the musician for defamation, and for mentioning her violent death in the lyrics of the song.

About The Author:

This article is authored by Jim Thomas. He is a music lover and trained guitarist who shares his knowledge and love for music through his articles. He also gives guitar lessons to people who are interested in learning the art of music.